[title size=”2″]Are YOU communicating your VALUE on your resume?[/title]

If a person is even looking at your resume, you have less than 9 seconds to catch their attention to read further and ideally contact you for an interview.

How does your resume look and are you using a format that highlights your areas of expertise?

Let’s look at two of the more common resumes that you typically see…the chronological and the hybrid chronological…using one professional’s before and after resume.

[title size=”2″]Chronological Example: Before Manager Resume[/title]

BEFORE

This example uses a traditional Chronological resume format. Click on the image to see the full pdf of this resume. I’ve taken out details for privacy purposes.

In addition to being chronological, it is also task based. You will see this style used for lower level professionals and less formal organizations. It’s the one that everybody is taught in high-school, college, and work-force training centers.

With the proper language, you can communicate value using this format. See the AFTER example.

[title size=”2″]Hybrid Chronological Example: After Senior Auditor Resume[/title]

AFTER

This example is using a modified Chronological resume format. This is the rewrite of the Before Manager Resume. Click on the image to see the full pdf of this resume. I’ve taken out details for privacy purposes.

You will notice right off that I am a proponent of modifying this style so that the professional states the position being sought.
It is then followed with a short description that is again modified for each application describing areas that they can potentially bring value. Now I know some hiring managers who don’t necessarily like this section as most individuals use fluffy or meaningless adjectives.

TIP: Always ask yourself how you can provide value to the organization while also giving a taste of who you are. Your goal is to intrigue the reviewer so that they 1. want to read further and 2. contact you about the interview.

You will notice that it has a bulleted Areas of Expertise area. As a professional gets more experienced, they start saying the same tasks and skills in many of the positions held throughout their career. This bulleted area allows the professional to highlight skills/expertise again relevant to the position being applied for while keeping the resume from being redundant.

This resume still highlights certain tasks relevant to the positions being sought, but it goes a step further to highlight results achieved by the professional.

[title size=”2″]WHY does Yvonne transition professionals to the hybrid chronological?[/title]
First: I transition professionals and executives into the hybrid chronological for any position with a salary $75,000+ because the organizations are looking for an individual who can get results in specific areas.

Second: The hybrid chronological resume is more friendly to career transition professionals who have worked in multiple industries. Using this model, you can highlight areas and results relevant to the new industry.

Third: Professionals sometimes undervalue what they have to offer an organization which results in them taking jobs they are over-qualified for or not negotiating the salary range. While the results vary by profession and individual, the hybrid model above helped the Case Study professional communicate their value and obtain an offer ~$10,000 ABOVE the listed salary range.

[title size=”2″]Your task:[/title]

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Go through your resume and identify results that you have achieved in each position.
If in a career transition, research the language used in your target industry so that you can start wording the language appropriately.

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Remember…Communicate your value in your resume to stand out… (Some nice formatting doesn’t hurt either!)